Somaliland is a peaceful multi-party democracy. Officially, there is no power sharing system in Somaliland but it is there in the minds of many citizens. There is no consensus for this unwritten rule and therefore we might end up with a situation where everyone thinks they are neglected.
Currently the Gadabousi, Habar Younis feel that president Muse Biihi gave all the power to other tribes, namely Habar Jeclo and Habar Awal. To check if this is true, first, we need to agree that a fair share would be a one that gives each tribe a number of ministers proportional to their population.
Luckily, we have a survey made by the British protectorate in 1951. Using the same ratio, we can tell which tribe got more or fewer ministers than they should. Again without further ado, here is the data
Tribe Population 1950s Ratio by population Should have Actually have Gain/lost Major Essa 55,000 9% 2 1 -50.00% Gadabursi 45,000 7% 2 3 50.00% Habar Awal 130,000 20% 5 4 -20.00% * Arab 20,000 3% 1 2 100.00% Eidagalla 40,000 6% 1 1 0.00% * Habr Yunis 130,000 20% 5 3 -40.00% Habr Toljaala 100000 16% 4 5 25.00% * Dolbahanta 100,000 16% 4 3 -25.00% Warsangeli 20,000 3% 1 1 0.00% * Total 640,000 25 23
As you can see, the following tribes have hit the jackpot, they’ve got a proportional number of ministers to their population:
Eidagalla
Warsangeli
The following tribes have got more than they should have:
Arab (extra 1)
Habar Toljaala (extra 1)
Gadabursi (extra 1)
The following tribes have not got their fair share:
Essa (missing 1)
Habar Awal (missing 1)
Habar Yunis (missing 2)
Dolbahanta (missing 1)
As a conclusion, we note the following:
· There is no Jeegan in Somaliland Cabinet (the government is not mainly by Habar Awal and Habar Toljeclo)
· The tribe that got the least number of ministerial positions is Habar Yunis. Its the with most unfair share. It is not the only tribe with unfair share though, Habar Awal and Dolbahanta do not have their fair share in the cabinet.
· The tribe that has got more than their fair share are Arab, Habar Toljaala and Gadabusi
Personally, I am strongly against any power-sharing system and hopefully, we will move away from it one day.
Government positions should be assigned based on merits and capability and not on the tribe of a person. I do not think the president has picked based on merits but rather based on his own understanding of the secret power-sharing formula, which is not far off from the population ratio of Somaliland tribes.